In This Issue - May 2004
Welcome to Cypress Isles!
Members Elect New Directors
Road Widening Gets Mixed Reviews
Cypress Isles Contact List
Watch Your Garage Door
Water Restrictions
Speeding on Spring Island Way
Personal Milestones
Welcome to Cypress Isles!
Go over and say, "Hi."
Three new neighbors have moved in during the past several months. Here are
their addresses.
13762 Crystal River Drive
512 Divine Circle
738 Spring Island Way
If we've missed anyone, please let us know so we can mention you in the
next newsletter.
Members Elect New Directors
Cypress Isles homeowners elected a 5-member Board of Directors at the Annual
Members Meeting on May 18th. The new directors are listed in the "Cypress Isles Contact List." The number of
directors, which must be an odd number equal to or greater than three, was
reduced from 9 to 5 to fit the number of candidates.
The new Board held its organizational meeting to elect officers and appoint
committees, and plans to have its first working meeting on Tuesday June
15th at 6:30pm at the Library on Colonial Drive.
Road Widening Gets Mixed Reviews
Residents have mixed feelings about adding lanes but losing
median trees.
Orange County is preparing to widen the intersection of Lake Underhill and
Woodbury Roads to help relieve the traffic congestion there. Construction
is scheduled to start in June to add the following lanes:
On eastbound Lake Underhill - another left turn late to northbound Woodbury,
and a dedicated right turn lane to southbound Woodbury;
On westbound Lake Underhill - a right turn lane to northbound Woodbury.
The addition of these lanes will involve the removal of mature trees
from the median and along the sides of Lake Underhill.
The project was announced at a recent PTA meting of Waterford Elementary
School, to the surprise of many area residents.
Many commuters, exasperated by long waits at that intersection for turning
traffic and crossing pedestrians, applaud the widening as a long overdue
improvement. They would also like to see elevated crosswalks, or at least
extending the time between 4-way pedestrian crossings from one traffic light
cycle to 2 light cycles.
But not everyone is pleased with the changes. Several residents have e-mailed
various county officials, including Commissioner Linda Stewart, expressing
their objections to the project. Some of these objections are:
"The addition of more lanes of traffic would just encourage even more
cut-through traffic for those avoiding Alafaya Trail and its four traffic
lights" and because the "green canopy, which has taken 15 years
to develop and I have grown to love, would be gone, at least through that
stretch of Lake Underhill.
"Our children will be walking on a sidewalk right up against traffic,
similar to the elementary school on Dean Road and Colonial, where there
is almost no green space. There is now a patch of grass with oak trees separating
the children from traffic. They will be crossing a seven lane Lake Underhill
to get to school.
"A lot of us enjoy living in Waterford Lakes, because of the neighborhood
schools and suburban setting. I don't want Woodbury and Lake Underhill to
turn into an urban intersection. This will affect our property values."
Commissioner Stewart was unavailable to meet with the community.
Central Florida is one of the fastest growing areas in the country, and
Waterford Lakes is part of that growth. Twice each day, hundreds of homeowners
and students funnel through this one, clogged intersection, irritated by
each other. Meanwhile, school populations are growing, and more apartments
and strip malls are being built along tiny 2-lane Woodbury Road. Perhaps
our "planned" developments aren't really planned as thoroughly
as they should be.
So what's the plan? Well, it seems that even the Planning Division of the
Orange County Growth Management Department is searching for clarity. According
to http://www.orangecountyfl.net/dept/growth/planning/urbandesignelement.htm,
two of its policies articulate both sides of this issue.
"1.2.4 Elementary schools, adjacent neighborhoods, parks and neighborhood
shopping should be accessible to neighborhood residents by tree-lined sidewalks
and bikeways.
"1.2.5 Vehicular and pedestrian connections should be provided between
adjacent neighborhoods, with measures to prevent excessive cut-through traffic
and excessive speeds on neighborhood streets."
Also according to the website above, it is the policy of the Planning Division
of the Orange County Growth Management Department to consider "the
initiative of property owners, the development community, or other community
organizations." Note that Orange County puts property owners two places
ahead of HOAs in terms of influence.
Homeowners are encouraged to express their views to Orange County directly.
In fact, we understand that this widening project was the result of a letter
from 10 homeowners who asked for it.
The Cypress Isles News is not going to take sides on this complicated issue;
in fact, even our own editorial staff is divided on the right approach.
We just want to give you a "heads up" that road construction will
be happening, and to encourage everyone to try to understand the other points
of view.
Sandy and Denny Horazak
Fair and Balanced Editors
Board of Directors
Lee Blackwell, Director 407 275-2541 monsterous@aol.com
Myron Davis, Treasurer 407 737-8200 mdavis8200@adelphia.net
Dennis Horazak, President 407 207-6557 densus@bellsouth.net
Bill Snook, Secretary 407 380-2202 wsnook1@cfl.rr.com
Ron Wiley, Vice-President 407 384-2564 rwiley4@cfl.rr.com
Penn First Management 407-260-5344
Architectural Review Committee
Manny Juarez 321 235-6097 manny@innovaglobalusa.com
Lee Blackwell 407 275-2541 monsterous@aol.com
Cookie Symons 407 273-5460 minnieland@aol.com
Neighborhood Watch
Cookie Symons 407 273-5460 minnieland@aol.com
Myron Davis 407 737-8200 mdavis8200@adelphia.net
Media
Dennis Bode, Webmaster dbode@cfl.rr.com
Sandy & Denny Horazak, CI News Editor 407 207-6557 sanden@bellsouth.net
Handy Numbers
Orange County Sheriff
Non-emergency 407 737-2400
Animal Control (unleashed pets, etc.) 407 352-4390
Watch Your Garage Door
An open garage door is an open invitation.
Watch your garage door after you press your remote. Your garage door may
not close all the way if it senses an object too close to the door. Or it
may open again, on its own, because it's having electronic brain freeze.
In any case, it's a good idea to watch the door close all the way before
you zoom off to work. Also…
Keep your garage doors closed when you are not in your garage or in the
nearby area.
Lock your car doors, and bring in garage remotes from cars left in driveway.
Let's be careful out there!
Water Restrictions
No, they haven't gone away…
We are still under the same Orange County mandatory water restrictions that
were implemented in 2001. As a reminder of what that means:
NO WATERING on Monday, Tuesday, and Friday.
NO WATERING between 10:00 a.m. and 4:00 p.m. on your designated day.
Odd numbered houses (your house number ends in 1, 3, 5, 7, 9) may only water
on Wednesday and Saturday.
Even numbered houses (your house number ends in 0, 2, 4, 6, 8) may only
water on Thursday and Sunday.
The exceptions to these rules are newly planted sod (30 days); and "watering
in" fertilizer or chemicals within 24 hours of application, but still
not between 10 a.m. and 4 p.m.
Any questions? Ask the Orange County Water Division at (407) 836-6800, or
visit their website at http://sjr.state.fl.us/programs/watersupply.html
Sandy Horazak
Wet & Wild Editor
Speeding on Spring Island Way
Of course, it's those other guys…
A neighbor's beloved dog accidentally got out the front door recently and
was struck and killed by a speeding car on Spring Island Way at Lakes Way.
We extend our condolences to them for the loss of their 4-legged family
member.
It might have been, could someday be, a child.
Much of the speeding is done by the "cut-through" traffic -residents
of other neighborhoods who use Cypress Isles as a short-cut to Barrington
and beyond --instead of taking the longer drive on Lake Underhill Rd.
Much as we might like to have Lakes Way closed off, it's unlikely to happen.
Besides, the through-cutters could still zoom to the back entrance to CI
to access Lake Underhill Rd. Our paid off-duty Deputy Sheriff cannot be
there 24/7 to eliminate the problem.
Would speed bumps help? A 3-way Stop sign at Spring Island Way and Lakes
Way? Any other suggestions? If you would like to work with Orange County
to alleviate this problem, contact a Board member or come to a Board meeting.
Sandy Horazak
Road Warrior Princess
Personal Milestones
Events since our last publication
Happy Birthday to…
April 20 - Danny & Noah Juarez
May 4 - Alexandra Sheeler
May 5 - Steve Wood
May 23 - Michael Symons
May 27 - Jean Thomsin
July 6 - Joka Thomsin
July 23 - Dennis Horazak
July 27 - Sandy Horazak
July 30 -Hein Pham
Happy Anniversary to…
May 22 - Cookie & Scott Symons
May 27 - Sandy & Denny Horazak
June 1 - Jean & Joka Thomsin
Congrats to Timber Creek High grads:
Derek Curtin
Michael Symons, who was named MVP in Roller Hockey -- 3rd year in a row!
Congratulations to all other graduates -- from kindergarten, grade school, middle school, high school, college…that we didn't know about!